I ended February on a high note, losing 1.4 pounds. For the first time this year I feel like I’m mentally in the weight loss game.

I end February strong. Not only did I lose 1.4 lbs. this week, but my intermittent fast is going great. As of January I’m down 5.8 lbs. which brings my total weight loss to 133 pounds. My weight loss may be off to a slower start than expected this year, but I finally feel as if I’m once again firing on all cylinders.

I’m tracking and measuring everything. My daily activity is high. I just need to remember to wear that blasted Fitbit to track my steps.

Each Saturday, I refrain from eating and drinking anything until after my Weight Watchers weigh-in and meeting. This week I worried a little, because water and coffee are the only things I can consume until noon, due to the semi-fast I’m now doing. Despite the lack of liquids, my stomach didn’t make a peep during the meeting. No hunger pains after, and no growling. Just a general feeling of awesomeness.

11 Days Into My Fast
My intermittent fast is going great. It took a couple of days for my body to adjust. Also I needed to get my head around not eating first thing in the morning. Over thinking things got me into trouble during the early days (Mamma says “Thinking is the devil.”).

I tried to keep to a schedule within my eating window rather than trusting my body and eating when hungry. Once I stopped being a control freak it got easy.

Where I’ve struggled the most is my workouts. Morning is my workout time and I worried about a possible conflict with my fast. You need food for energy, right? My morning ritual included eating breakfast about an 60-90 minutes before my workout. After a hard 90-120 minute workout, I’d come home for a light snack (exercising always makes me hungry).

Turns out coffee and moderation are my saviors.

The caffeine in coffee temporarily suppresses appetite and boosts both fat burning (by as much as 10%!) and metabolism. Many body builders and athletes drink coffee before workouts because of the health benefits.

Thankfully my husband and mom convinced me to give coffee a real try. I’m not sure I could do this fast without it.

As for moderation, I’m not going full blast on my workouts. I can’t. I learned the hard way that going full tilt leaves nothing in your gas tank.

Friday morning was my MOI cycle class, my first in weeks. I love that class and did 60 minutes of all out cycling. When I met with my trainer right after for weight lifting, I faded about 5 minutes into our first circuit. The next 25 minutes I struggled.

Lesson learned. Now my mornings workouts are moderate intensity. But I’m adding a second cardio routine — an afternoon walk or run —  between meals to burn off my extra energy.